The winter season can blanket your town with snow and ice, which can be both beautiful and stressful at the same time. Blustery winter weather brings many challenges, such as travel delays, slick roads, and school/business closings. It can also wreak havoc on your hair. According to WebMD, harsh winter weather changes can be your hair’s worst enemy. Therefore, it’s important to understand a few helpful tips about caring for your hair during cold weather and the winter season.

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Keeping Warm

A healthy head of hair can help keep your entire body warm during winter months. Heat escapes from all areas of your body, including your head. However, if your body is covered up, then the only place heat can escape from your body is your head. Unless, of course, your head is covered as well, which is when your hair comes into play. While hair won't trap heat entirely, it will help keep you warmer. If you are experiencing hair loss or baldness, definitely wear a hat, or keep your head warm some other way. If using Avacor®hair products, allow the products time to be absorbed before you put your hat on and head out for the day.

Effects of Winter Weather

When winter weather hits full stride, it can cause a variety of issues that affect your hair health and ability to grow a healthy head of hair. Static electricity from hats, dry frizz, and split ends all occur more frequently during winter months. There is also the hat hair factor, which forces many people to choose between staying warm and keeping their hair style in place.

Weather Elements

The winter brings many extreme weather elements that can cause hair problems. Sunny days skiing, combined with strong wind, snow, ice, and sweat can all damage your hair. In fact, the sun exposure in the winter is often worse than the summer, because of all the other weather elements that factor into play.

Heat

“Heat” may not be the first word that comes to mind when you think of winter weather, but it certainly plays a role. After all, if you don’t crank up the furnace, you’ll be pretty chilly, even indoors! Your hair is affected by all of the heat. Sitting indoors all day can still be damaging to your hair in the winter, similar to how using a blow dryer every day can cause your hair to become dry and brittle, and thus, easier to break off. And to that point, limit your time under a blow dryer as much as possible during the winter. Blow dryers in general are damaging to your hair, especially in winter.

What To Do for Dryness

Now that you know a little bit about the damage various aspects of winter weather can do for your hair, it’s important to understand how to combat those effects. The most important strategy for fighting the winter elements is to use conditioner. But, don’t settle for any old conditioner from the grocery store. Find one that is rich, moisturizing, and thickening. Boston salon owner Marc Harris indicates that the conditioner should contain a few important ingredients, including essential fatty acids and humectants, because they moisturize effectively, and also attract moisture from the air throughout the day. Specifically, look for a conditioner with soy protein and panthenol.

Fighting Static Electricity

Static electricity also kicks into high gear during the winter. It can cause dryness, and make your hair look like a mess. You can use dryer sheets if you want (seriously), or opt for a boar bristle brush that has a wooden handle. This type of brush reduces static electricity.

Styling Tips

Depending on how you style your hair, you may want to consider a few adjustments in the winter. For example, consider a styling cream rather than a gel. Styling creams add more moisture to your hair to combat the dry air. They are also softer products, so your hair is less likely to break off. In general, avoid any hair care products that have alcohol, and avoid spraying fragrances on your hair, as the alcohol will make the hair dry and brittle.

Avoiding Hat Hair

Hat hair is something we all deal with in cold weather, though there are a few things you can do to help avoid looking like a clown when you take off your hat. Push your hair back, or push it against the way you want it to fall, when you put on the hat. This adds a bit of resistance to the hat having its way with your hair. Also, carry a small bottle of texturizer with you to quickly add body and style to your hair once you take off your hat.

Shampoo

Like conditioner, the shampoo you use has a direct impact on your hair health. According to celebrity and fashion stylist Jamal Hammadi, shampoos with the least amount of chemicals are best for your overall hair health. He also recommends shea butter to heal damaged hair and avoid damaging healthy hair.

Final Tips

There are a few other tips to keep in mind to maintain healthy hair during the winter, according to Longlocks.com. First, trim it often, especially long hair. That way, if you get a split end or the end of your hair gets damaged, you trim it off before it has a chance to spread up towards your scalp. Also, avoid showering in very hot water. The heat from the water will dry out your hair, especially when combined with the dry winter air.

Hair Care & Hair Loss Prevention

Hair loss can occur more rapidly during the winter, as hair is more susceptible to drying out and falling off your head. If you begin to experience hair loss, seek treatment to help regrow your hair and maintain a healthy head of hair, long after winter is gone. Avacor offers several products to help take care of your hair, including shampoos, conditioners, and hair growth products.